The Eagan boys' hockey team is headed to the Class 2A tournament for the third time in four seasons, after defeating St. Thomas Academy 4-2 on Thursday night.

The Wildcats (18-9-1) trailed 2-0 in the second period but scored four unanswered goals to win the Section 3 championship at the Lee & Rose Warner Coliseum.

St. Thomas Academy finishes its first season in Class 2A at 20-7-1, after winning the past three Class 1A championships.

St. Thomas Academy took a 1-0 lead in the first period on a goal by junior Christiano Versich. The Cadets outshot Eagan 11-8 in the period, although Eagan appeared to be the more physical team.

The Cadets extended their lead midway through the second period, when junior Tommy Novak scored from the right circle. But the Wildcats continued to play physical hockey. Eagan senior Nick Wolff cut the lead to 2-1 with a power-play goal 10:21 through the period, and senior Max Elsenheimer tied the score with 39 seconds remaining in the period.

The Wildcats took a 3-2 lead early in the third period, when senior Kyle Stebbing scored on a one-timer from the left circle. They added an empty-net goal with 42 seconds remaining.

The fourth-seeded Wildcats were the underdogs coming into sections, after finishing fourth in the South Suburban Conference. The team beat fifth-seeded East Ridge 5-1 in the quarterfinals and upset top-seeded Cretin-Derham Hall in overtime 2-1 on Saturday.

Nate Gotlieb is a University of Minnesota student reporter on assignment for the Star Tribune.